Ride quality, says it all. It's a joy to drive in. Smooth like a Buick Roadmaster ( Roadmonster)not back breaking like a jeep. Reviewers aren't fair when they claim, it has bad handling, compare apples to apples, not Lamborghinis to Station Wagons. It's a Buick, through and through. The Rendezvous' fat ugly sister, is probably easier to handle, but who wants to be seen riding an Aztec.

After years of bouncing around in truck suspensions, the smooth ride was the main factor in my decision to purchase the Rendezvous. Also every passenger I have had appreciates the ride. But everyone has their own opinion and if the reviewer is looking for off road capabilities, they would not like the Rendezvous.

Also I sometimes feel the terms reviewers and critics can be used synomonously. By the way I also agree with some earlier posts that many reviewers believe Japanese cars can do no wrong and American brands must be inferior. Just one of my opinions.

jafo2001 - Don't just take the magazine reviews as the final word for the Rendezvous (or for any other vehicle), especially for a subjective thing as handling. Everyone has their wants and biases that works into the final judgement of a vehicle. Go to a local dealer and take one out for a ride to find out for yourself if you're serious about buying one.

I took my RDV out to the NJ Six Flags Great Adventure and had a interesting time. I decided to drive through the safari to look for some dirt or muddy roads but instead got cracked/broken asphalt and many twisty and hilly roads. A giraffe came up for a close and personal visit. He ended up completely licking and biting my driver side window and windshield and places on my roof (thanks to the family up front who decided to feed him potato chips!) We made up the roads easily. Then went into the monkey area and was given a warning slip before entering. Upon entering I saw why - the place was littered with antennas, wiper blades, and all sorts of body pieces. Backing out to escape was out of the question so I was forced to proceed. Monkeys attacked every car in front of me. A female sees me and runs and leaps up onto my driver side outside mirror. She gets comfortable on the large mirrors and urinates - all over my mirror and windshield. Finally I make it out (no missing pieces) and park for some fun. I return and there's a huge spot of bird dropping on roof. Went home to clean off all these nasties.

I live in Philly and have been to that Six Flags/Safari. Those monkeys are crazy. It is fun to watch them climb on the cars. I guess it's not quite as much fun when it's your car! Your story still made me laugh, though. Thanks for sharing.

Glad you enjoyed the story. I did notice the brighter colored cars in front of me attracting more monkeys - a late 80's red Toyota Celica had about 4 monkeys sitting on it's roof and enjoying the ride through the fenced in area. Mines pewter so maybe I looked like a small elephant with those large mirrors.

Hey guys, I just wanted to let you all know I got the latest issue of Car and Driver today and inside is a picture of the new Rainier they call the "Buick SUV." It's on page 26 right in the middle of the page. It basically looks like a Trailblazer w/ the Rendezvous front end glued on... it even has the base RDV wheels, not even the chrome ones... at first glance I thought it was a Hyuandi Sante Fe honestly... there's not really much more to say about it... I just hope that it ends up being nicer than that picture makes it out to be.

Does anybody know who makes the RDV upgraded 6 disc changer/stereo? In this article, the Chevy Trailblazer stereo (which is ranked 3rd best car stereo under $30,000) is pictured and it looks EXACTLY like the RDV's. The Chevy Trailblazer's stereo manufacturer is BOSE. Any thoughts? Also, does anybody have any specs on the 6CD changer/stereo specs (e.g., power). Thanks in advance.

Mostly everything in the RDV is manufacturered by Delco or Pioneer. I'm more than 99% sure the head unit and changer are made by Delco for GM, I'll take a look at it later and post if I'm wrong. The rear 6x9's are made by Pioneer for GM, and the amp is an off the shelf Delco unit. As far as power goes, I don't know... I have a feeling the front woofers and tweeters are run off the head unit, probably with between 20 and 50 watts of power. Same with the rear speakers in the doors. THe 6x9 subs in the hatch area most likely have their own seperate amplifier producing about 50-100 watts per channel.

I am considering purchasing a Rendezvous CX awd but am a little leary in that I have to tow 3000lbs.

I presently tow with a Pontiac montana 2wd and that is just adequite. Since the RDV weighs more than the Pontiac and also has awd and since I can't test drive it while towing I need some info.Thanks in advance.

You probably won't notice much difference in towing Victor. The added weight will help with stability, it will also help with traction going up the boat ramp. Unless it's not a boat you are towing......

I'm wondering if you were aware that the RDV is mechanically similar (except the rear suspension and available AWD) to the standard FWD Montana? So, you're probably already very well acquainted with how the RDV will tow your trailer!

IMHO, if I were more than very occassionally towing 3000lbs I'd get something else more HD. How about the Envoy or Trailblazer? That would tow like crazy. Imports IMHO usually lack the torque to really tow well, so I'd stick to the big three and the envoy would be a good choice. Love that motor.

lswaidz - I've got the copy of Car&Driver at home a few days ago but haven't had a chance to read it - reading Motortrend at the moment. Think I'll take a quick look tonight. Definitely hope it doesn't look like the Sante Fe which I don't like all that much.

victorfsl - You should seriously consider the towing packing if you plan to tow that much.

Rainier looks like the Bravada with a Buick grill. Very nice from what I can see. The only engine will be a V8, so it will have limited appeal IMO. Not too many people need that kind of power / poor gas mileage.

The 5.3 V8 is actually the same engine from the Chevy SSR. It's the "Vortec" 5.3 except with an Aluminum block. It makes about 285 horsepower from what I understand, but realistically it's more. Expect between 12 - 16 MPG from it.

The supercharged 3.4 should get between 15-18 MPG. It shouldn't be much different than the 3.4L V6 itself. A supercharger realistically only takes away 1 MPG or so.

And as far as the Rainier looking like a Santa Fe, keep in mind that was at first glance... I spent about 10 minutes really looking at that picture, and it just reminds me too much of it... I had hoped they'd do an all chrome grille and I was REALLY hoping it would have portholes, 4 on each side... I don't know about you guys but I'm crazy about that new Park Avenue, the 2003. I'm not a huge fan of the new chrome wheels they gave it but I love the portholes on the side of the hood, I think that's a trick addition to that car. My dad has a 99 Park Avenue and I really think it's an underrated car... hopefully all of this will help it's following grow...

Someone over on the Aztek forum mentioned it was difficult to remove the engine air filter due to the really tight layout of the engine bay. I too had a long and hard time taking mines out (it was for curiosity). I had a helluva time putting it back due to the rubber hose getting in the way. Anyone else have a chance to change the filter?And have tips on making it more easier?

I'm an rdv owner since 10/01 and simply love it. Anyway, I had installed a rear facing cosco child seat in the center of the middle row bench seat. Since I have one child, the safest place is where it is, in the center. It has been there ever since I've purchased it, and removed it for the first time to wipe on some leather preservative today. I was startled when I noticed that where the child seat actually rests on the bench seat, there are two deep square dimples aprox. 1x1 inch and two smaller dimples imprinted in the seats. I'm going to now install a 1/8 or 3/8 inch piece of plywood underneath the seat to evenly distribute the weight to prevent further damage. But was curious if anyone else has had this problem, and if so any suggestions on what to do to remedy this. Any tips or help would greatly be appreciated.

Nextmoon - Pay Jiffy Lube or your Buick dealer $30 for a full service oil change. Another possibility is to install a K&N filtercharger and intake. It replaces the airbox, lasts forever (if properly maintained), and might even give your engine a couple of extra horses.

Dragontamer - My sons forward facing seat has done the same thing. I don't worry about it, and I think it's possible that it will correct itself given time to heal. I wouldn't place wood underneath the seat as it could have an effect on safety. Maybe some kind of dense foam mat would distribute the pressure? Sears sells a mat to place in between a home treadmill and carpet that serves the same purpose...cut into a one foot square, it might do the trick.

I installed a passenger air filter (pollen) about 2 months back on my CX. The CX's should not come with them. The opening is inside the glove department in the back wall towards the left side. There's a black removable panel that easily comes off by pushing a tab on the left side. Inside you'll find the filters (2 pieces) if you have them. I bought them (comes as a pair) from my parts department for ~$50. They're charcoal-infused filters (not sure what that's supposed to mean) and used across many GM vehicles. Turns out the parts number in the manual wasn't correct - the part was slightly too tall to fit in the filter slot. I had them look it up on their computer and found the right one (I don't recall the part #). They're really simple to install. You should try installing it on the stop to save yourself a trip if the part's not right. Hopes it helps.

Well, the only major problem I've had is that there was some water leaking into my passenger compartment. It turned out to be condensation on the water pump travelling down a wire that went behind the firewall and into the compartment. It was an easy fix, according to my dealer. I also had a problems w/ the driver side door not aligning with the rest of the molding on the car. In other words, the drivers door seemed to stick out about an inch. I guess that was an easy fix too.

I can't think of any other major problems I've had yet... but I recommend you go to the NHTSA web site and look up all the service bulletins that have been posted on the RDV as of yet. That will be a tell-tale sign on how they're holding up.

Quick note: Just because you take your vehicle to a shop doesn't mean the air filter will be installed properly. Mine cover wasn't stuck through the slots on the bottom and thus was hanging open on the bottom.

If you use some patience and common sense about removing things to get access its not super hard (its been a couple months so I can't remember what the deal was). Just be patient and get the bottom part stuck in through the tabs, clip the top and then re-check it.

Thanks for the suggestion fedlawman. I'll give that a try. Mikez2002- I own a sedona bronze/light driftwood cxl. It was manufactured 7/01. The only problem I have had was the rubber shifter boot that protrudes off of the steering column split in half. It was replaced under warranty at the dealer. I was set on a light driftwood cxl, but it didn't have a sunroof. The next color choice was the sedona, which had a roof, so I purchased that one. Didn't really need one but all my previous vehicles had one so why break tradition eh? As for the color itself, its color does vary at different times of the day. In bright sunlight it has a beautiful orange metallic glow to it. In dimmer light it resembles more of a hersheys chocolate bar color, which is also very nice I might add. I don't know if I would settle for having the color "grow on you." Perhaps another color would suit you and your wife. Just MHO

Yeah, I always double check things after I take my cars in for oil change service.

In the case of the air filter on the RDV, I don't think patience would help as much as maybe a pair of smaller hands. I do see and understand the tabs need to be aligned first but there's just plain not much room to work with it. Well, every car will have it's little quirks - like my old car had the check transmission stick very well hidden at the rear of the engine and the shops never put it back correctly. I don't plan on going under the hood alot but it will be difficult the few times I do.